Pusher conveyer with supply hopper



Aug.`22, 1950 w. H. LANG PUSHER CONVEYER WITH SUPPLY HOPPER 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 Filed May l, 1946 INVENTOR.

Mul/m Aug. 22, 1950 w H, LANG 2,519,970

PUSHER CONVEYER WITH SUPPLY HOPPER Filed May 1, 1946 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 IN V EN TOR. wm ffy l BY @QQ/ W Patented ug. 22, i950 PUSHER CNVEYER VJITH SUPPLY HOPPER William H. Lang, Chicago, Ill., assignor to The Fairfield Engineering Company, Marion, hio,

a corporation of Ohio Application May 1, 1946, Serial No. 666,352

2 Claims.

My invention contemplates and provides a conveyor, and more particularly a recirculating conveyor, which is of simple and sturdy construction, efficient in operation, and economical to construct and maintain in service.

By a recirculating conveyor, as I employ such designation, is meant one comprising an endless trough or channel v-Jherefrom and whereto relatively small-sized coal or other mechanically flowable solid material is discharged and supplied and which intermediate successive discharges therefrom may remain loaded to predetermined capacity with traveling solid material.

An object of my invention is to provide a highly satisfactory recirculating conveyor wherein the conveyed solid material is propelled through the endless trough or channel by a plurality of spaced-apart iieXibly connected nights disposed in proximity to but never contacting the trough or conduit as the flights weave and turn in travcling their endless path.

Another object ci my invention is generally and substantially to improve the construction and operation of conveyors which comprise spacedapart flights moved through a trough or channel by means of a flexible tension member to which the nights are attached.

A preferred embodiment of my invention comprises in combination with an endless trough from whence conveyed material is dischargeable by gravity at several points: A multiplicity of spaced-apart flights in the form of blades, of width somewhat less than the width of the trough, so proiiled as to impede upsurges of the material which they Contact and propel and normally to be urged downwardly by the weight of such material; rail-supported trolleys each comprising a harp having a relatively rigid downward eXtension which carries and desirably is an integer with one of the blades; a power-driven sprocket chain which connects with each trolley-and-blade unit intermediate the trolley and the blade; and a plurality of sets of trough inlets, each of said sets of inlets functioning from .time to time automatically to admit to an adjacent portion of the trough, up to a plane between the blades and the sprocket chain, a replenishment of the solid material being circulated in the trough.

The aforementioned and other objects, features and advantages or" my invention will appear from the following detailed description wherein reference is made to the accompanying two sheets of drawings, wherein:

Fig. 1 is a somewhat diagrammatic top plan View of a recirculating conveyor of my present invention;

Fig. 2 is a vertical sectional view which may be regarded as taken on the line 2-2 of Fig. l and looking in the direction. indicated by the arrows;

Fig` 8 is a vertical sectional view which may be regarded as taken on the line 3 3 of Fig. 4 and looking in the direction indicated by the arrows; and

Fig. 4 is a vertical sectional View which may be regarded as taken on the line 4--4 of Fig. 1 and looking in the direction indicated by the arrows.

Similar characters of reference refer to similar parts throughout the several views.

In the drawings, reference numeral IE) indicates as a whole an endless conduit. The lower portion of this conduit constitutes a trough or channel in which small-sized coal or other mechanically flowable solids are circulated as and by the devices hereinafter described.

Conduit Ii, which usually is supported by joists or joist-lilie structural members (not shown) lying either above or below it, may comprise side walls Il, bottom I2, top I3, angle members I4 which lie in the exterior angles between and are welded or otherwise secured to the top and sides, and other angle members iii which similarly are related to the bottom and sides.

Disposed in and transversely of the lower or trough portion of conduit I@ is a multiplicity of spaced-apart blades I6. Each of these blades IB has a width somewhat less than the width of the trough portion of conduit lil. It also has a substantially straight lower edge Il, a cylindrically concave leading surface i8, and an upwardly extending arm I9 which desirably is rigidly and integrally joined with the convex trailing Ysur-- face 2t of the blade.

Associated with each of the blades I6, and at all times cooperating with the hereinafter-mentioned sprocket chain to retain the lower and lateral edges of the blade out of contact with the bottom and side walls of the trough while maintaining the upper and lower edges o-f the blade in substantially the same vertical plane, is a trolley 2l. Each of the trolleys 2I comprises the spacedapart angeless wheels 22 aorded bearings for rotation on a common axis by the arms 23 of the trolley harp.

The lower ends 24 of the arms 23 of each trolley harp are conformed to lie in parallelism with each other on opposite sides of the upper end of a blade arm I9 to which they are rigidly secured by bolts 25 and their cooperating nuts.

Each blade I9 is provided with a pair of oppositely and laterally projecting shoulders 26, and receiving the upper end of each said arm I9 and snugly held to its shoulders 26 by the extremities of the lower ends 24 of the associated trolley harp arms, is one of the horizontally disposed links of an endless sprocket chain 2l.

Sprocket chain 2'I suitably is trained over a plurality of sprocket wheels 28 one of which is suitably power driven by appropriate means not shown. The adjacent portion of the inner one of the conduit walls I I is suitably slottedto accommodate cooperation of each" sprocket wheel 28 with the chain 21.

Coextensive with conduit I0,.and Supported in the position shown by being welded to the conduit top I3 or otherwise, isA the trolley rail 29; upon` the upper surfaces of the lower flanges of which the" wheels 22 of`l tlieseverab trolleys 2 I` roll.

At a plurality of discharge points, indicated at 30 inzFig, 13 the conveyor trough is provided with bottom. openings 3I which in certain instances mayf be permanently open (as for example when a` Stoker hopper directly underlies the opening) and inother instances may be closable by laterallyl sliding;y doors 32 which, when closed, lie end to-end with and in the same plane as contiguous portions of.Y the trough bottom I2 At'a plurality of supply. points, indicated at 33 in Fig. 1,. the conduit I2! is provided with appropriately disposed lateral inlets 34, each of which is. provided with a visor 35 which at all times permits the movement of. coal or the like from the inlet into the lower or trough portion of the conduit up to but not above a plane in whichA the lower edges of thevisor lie, being a plane which preferably is located substantially above the upper edgesvcf the blades I6 but substantially below the chain 2l.

Each visor 35. suitably consists, as shown, of a downwardly and inwardly inclined top wall E35 and a` pair ot spaced apart end walls 235 that areright triangles between the hypotenuse sides of which the top wall |35 extends; the lower edges of thetop wall |35 and the end walls 235- occupying thefsaine` horizontal plane. Each. inlet 3114 communicates with conduit. Il'V through a passage in the nature of a rectangular fenestration with which one of the visors 35 is associated; the top.l wall of the visor extending inwardly and downwardly of the conduit I from the upper l'iorizontalA boundary 34 of such passage. Such upper horizontal boundary |34 of the passage l prefer to call. its lintel boundary. The end walls 235 of eachvisor` 35' extend inwardly of the conduit I0 from the upper portion of the vertical sides 234 of the passage or fenestration. withwhich the visor is associated, and such vertical sides 234-01' the passage or fenestraticn I prefer to call its lateral boundaries.

By way of example, and not for purpcse ci limitation because the dimensions of the several parts of my conveyor may be varied within wide limits, I willsay that the hereinbefore-described equipment of my invention admirably is suited to handle the comparatively small size coal now commonly supplied to furnace stokers when the principal dimensions of the blades are about x 11, the inside width of the conduit is about l2." and its inside height about 16, the spacing between the blade and trolley units is about 24, and the distance between the wheel axis of each trolley and the medial horizontal plane of the material moving therein;

chain link directly associated with that trolley is about 5%.

The hereinbefore described recirculating conveyor lls a long-felt want for a simple and acceptably efiicient equipment of reasonably light construction capable of conveying coal cr the like from one or more supply points to one `or more discharge points; without functioning quickly to destroy itself. Itis believed tobe without prototype in the prior art. By virtue of the cooperation of the trolleys and the chain with which they are associated, its several material propelling blades weave and turn in traveling theirendless path without at any time striking the sidesV or bot-tom of the trough in which they move. The troughy or portions thereof may be disposed' either horizontally or angularly to the horizontal. Whenever any discharge opening of the trough is unblocked, by a door or previously admitted coal or the like which has not yet moved away from the opening,Y coal: or the like is; emitted from; that opening and` additional: similar solid: material' is4 supplied tof, the troughV to maintain substantially. uniform its content of the'solid When no discharge opening. is. unbio^ked,.the coal. on like solid material circulates and recirculates in the trough without having the quantity thereofv increased. Other. advantages of my inventionI will be apparent. to personsskilled in the art to which it relates;

Having thus illustratedl and described4 a presently preferred embodiment of my; invention, L do not limit myself tothe details thereot but wish iso-cover all equivalent embodiments falling within thesc'opeofthe appended claims.

What I claim as new and desireto secureby Letters,l Patent' or the United States is:

l. Conveyor apparatus comprisingv a. substantially endless trough, aV plurality of flights of less width than the trough disposed in. and transversely thereof, a, trolley overlyingeachl flight and comprising a member to which the flight is attached, an endless exible tension member, alongwhich the flightsare spaced andwith which they are` connected, devicesA for moving. thcten.- sion member through the trough, a trolley support overlying and substantiallyv ccextensive with the: trough wher-ewith the several trolleys coop.- crate` to hold their associated nights out of ccntact with the trough while traveling therein, at least. one outlet for said.. trough through which conveyed solid material. may be discharged, at least one inlet for said trough functioning to keepv it substantially rllied. with conveyed solid material up to a plane underlying the tension member, said inlet comprisinga pair of oppositely. located passages formed in the sides of the trough, each said passage extending upwardly from thev tr ugh bottom and having a lintel boundary located. substantially above the tension member, hoppers functioning to. supply niaterial for movement into the troughthrcugh said passages. and a visor for the upper portion oi each of said. passageseach. said visor extending inwardly and'A downwardly from the lintel boundary of its associatedpassage and inwardlyfrom the upper portions of thelateral boundaries of said passage. to, iie in proximate spaced relationship to. the other visor 'and' to presenta lower visor edge occupyinga plane beneath the tension member.

2. Conveyor apparatus comprising a substantially endless trough,.a,plurality of flights of less width than the trough disposed in and transversely thereof, a trolley overlying each ight and comprising a member to which the flight is attached, an endless flexible tension member along which the ights are spaced and with Vwhich they are connected, devices for moving the tension member through the trough, a trolley support overlying and substantially coextensive with the trough wherewith the several trolleys cooperate to hold their associated nights out of contact with the trough while traveling therein, at least one outlet for said trough through which conveyed solid material may be discharged, at least one inlet for said trough functioning to keep it substantially filled with `conveyed solid material up to a plane underlying the tension member, said inlet comprising a pair of passages formed in opposite sides of the trough, each such passage extending upwardly from the trough bottom and having la lintel boundary located substantially above the tension member, hoppers functioning to supply material for movement into the trough through said passage, and a visor for REFERENCES CITED The following references are of record in the le of this partent:

UNITED STATES PATENTSI Number Name Date 723,971 Acklin Mar. 31, 1903 751,885 Webster Feb. 9, 1904 1,721,316 Prbil July 16, 1929 20 2,178,342 Hapman Oct. 3l, 1939 2,366,569 Sinden Jan, 2, 1945 

